Give Thanks for the Wild

Two decades of gratitude

By Phil Hough
Reader Contributor

The Reader and the Friends of Scotchman Peak Wilderness both turn 21 in the coming months, passing into adulthood. For readers who haven’t heard the news, I’ll be leaving the nest soon, retiring in early 2026. As Jackson Browne said: “And I’ll soon believe, it’s just as well, this is my opening farewell.”   

Fear not, because even as I retire, I leave the Friends in the very good hands of the talented and capable Rose Olson, our incoming executive director. I am grateful for her abilities and eagerness to guide the organization and the effort. While I leave the daily work to Rose, and an excellent staff backed up by a dedicated board, wilderness remains in my heart and the Scotchmans remain in my soul.

Back when we were both young, I wrote my first “Give Thanks for the Wild” column for the Reader. So long ago, I don’t remember exactly when I started this Thanksgiving tradition. This year, I look back with 21 years of gratitude for the whole experience. From the original couple dozen folks who came together to form the Friends — and, in the process, became friends of one and another — I’ve met many people, with varied backgrounds, lives and perspectives, who all share an interest in wild places. 

I am especially grateful to all the many current and former volunteers, board members and staff; their dedication and passion for wild places have been remarkable and inspiring. It has kept me going for two decades. 

There are so many memorable experiences. I am grateful for the 20-mile ski trek on a cold, rainy February day with the district ranger and his wife to retrieve a camera station as part of our rare forest carnivore study. Listening to wilderness guru Doug Scott cite, by memory, testimony from field hearings in the ’70s. Of hiking to the top of Scotchman Peak with two county commissioners in 2015 and unfurling a banner proclaiming “Bonner County Loves Scotchman Peak.” Of accompanying senior management from Idaho Forest Group into the Scotchmans and watching their eyes open with wonder at the wilderness charms. 

This community of wilderness supporters came together one person at a time, each with their own unique experience. There are 12,000 more of these moments, too many to detail here. I am thankful for them all.

We have brought together more than 12,000 people from across Idaho and Montana, as well as the rest of the nation in support of wilderness. We have nurtured a broader, deeper sense of conservation by community leaders. We have built a robust trail maintenance program to keep trails access open to hikers. Our trail ambassadors keep hikers safe, trails open and mountain goats wild. 

The wide-eyed wonder of the fifth-graders who come through our Winter Tracks program inspires everyone involved. We brought together nontraditional allies in support of community-based solutions for forest land management challenges. I am grateful to be passing on a legacy of building strong communities.

My recent sabbatical reminds me there are yet more trails and rivers to explore. So many wild places to visit. It’s time to follow Ed Abbey’s “Final Paragraph” of advice: 

“It is not enough to fight for the land; it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it’s still here. So, get out there and hunt and fish and mess around with your friends, ramble out yonder and explore the forests, climb the mountains, bag the peaks, run the rivers, breathe deep of that yet sweet and lucid air, sit quietly for a while and contemplate the precious stillness, the lovely, mysterious, and awesome space.”

Phil Hough is outgoing executive director of Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness, which he helmed since its creation 21 years ago.